Yesterday, the Bowl Committee announced that the Memphis Tigers (19) are playing the Iowa State Cyclones in the 2017 Autozone Liberty Bowl. Iowa State has not played in a bowl in five years and it was the AutoZone Liberty Bowl. Support your Memphis Tigers or Iowa State Cyclones in Memphis on December 30, 2017 with Liberty Bowl tickets

58th Annual Bowl Game features teams from Texas and Georgia

The next incarnation of the Liberty Bowl will feature the Georgia Bulldogs (7-5, 4-4 SEC) against the TCU Horned Frogs (6-6, 4-5 Big 12) on December 30th at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee.

For the Horned Frogs, this marks the 13 bowl appearance in 16 seasons that Head Coach Gary Patterson has coached the team. For the Bulldogs, this is the first season for Head Coach Kirby Smart who led his team to a 7-5 overall record and their 50th bowl appearance.

“Being his first year, probably just some growing pains,” TCU head coach Gary Patterson said of Kirby Smart and Georgia. “For us, it used to be 6-6 might’ve been exciting but we believe in winning championships, just like the University of Georgia does. That’s what Kirby’s trying to get to now, that’s why the University of Georgia brought him back.”

Georgia’s Coach Smart knows that TCU has been a program on the rise of late but went through some growing pains this season.

“The opportunity to play an outstanding team in TCU is an exciting challenge for our coaches and players,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said in a statement. “This will be my first trip to the game as a player or coach but the Liberty Bowl has a long history of providing a quality bowl experience that I’m sure our players and fans will enjoy. We will face a quality Big 12 opponent in TCU and I’m sure Coach (Gary) Patterson will have them at their best on December 30. We are anxious to begin practice and preparations for the trip to Memphis.”

The 56th annual Liberty Bowl taking place at Liberty Bowl Stadium in Memphis on January 12, 2016 and will feature the Kansas State Wildcats (6-6) against the Arkansas Razorbacks (7-5).

This is not the first time these two teams have met and played in the Cotton Bowl in 2011 which the Razorbacks won 29-16. This will also be the first time former K-State Defensive Coordinator Bret Bielema, now Arkansas’ head coach, will face his former boss Bill Snyder.

“For us it is about our wonderful fan base,” Snyder said. “We have an awful lot of people who save up their nickels and dimes throught course of the year and the only vacation they take is the one after the season is over. It doesn’t matter where it is they just love to go. It is meaningful to us and it is meaningful to them, as well.”